


Brother Stand Beside Me

by stella_polaris



Category: The Hobbit (2012), The Hobbit - All Media Types
Genre: Character Death, F/M, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Gen, Hair Braiding, Jealous Kíli, M/M, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Sibling Incest, adorable bby!dwarves, and Uncle Thorin, teenage!dwarves hooray
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-03-21
Updated: 2013-07-31
Packaged: 2017-12-06 00:29:37
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 10,370
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/729609
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/stella_polaris/pseuds/stella_polaris
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>I've found I always liked the parts in my stories most where Fíli and Kíli are still quite young... so I decided to write a short story/drabble series with that.</p>
<p>Part 1 - In which Kíli is scared of thunderstorms<br/>Part 2 - In which Fíli gets his first kiss (and Kíli is jealous)<br/>Part 3 - In which Fíli remembers<br/>Part 4 - In which Fíli nearly loses Kíli<br/>Part 5 - In which Fíli is sick<br/>Part 6 - In which Thorin sings a song</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. In which Kíli is scared of thunderstorms

**Author's Note:**

> I have no idea how many parts this is going to have... it really depends on my inspiration and on the time I have to write it. I'm on holiday right now, so I have some time. After that, I have no idea. The rating will most likely go up to T later and might contain slight incest. But due to the fact that this'll just have stories where they're quite young, it won't be anything explicit.
> 
> Prompts about baby dwarves are always welcome, though! 
> 
> Disclaimer: I don't own anything, I just borrow Tolkien's characters for my own ideas. I also don't own the title, that's a song by Heather Dale.

It’s not the thunder that wakes Fíli up. Nor is it the patter of rain on the roof or the way the room lights up for a split second every time a lightning strikes. Fíli doesn’t care about thunderstorms and usually he’d sleep right through the nightly ones. What does wake him up, however, are the muffled sobs and whimpers from across the room that Kíli is trying hard to suppress and isn’t quite succeeding at it.

Fíli sits up in his bed and blinks, his eyes adjusting to the darkness. Kíli’s form is a lump under the sheets, hidden although it’s still warm. The air has been hot and humid all day and Fíli is actually grateful for the rain. He has a hunch that Kíli would disagree, though.

Another flash of lightning and the loud rumbling of thunder a moment later and Fíli sees Kíli shiver in his blanket cocoon. He pushes the sheets back and gets up to cross the small distance between his bed and Kíli’s. The stone floor is cool under his bare feet and it’s a weird contrast to the warm air that fills the room.

Fíli slips into bed next to Kíli and it takes about two seconds until he has his arms full of a scared, crying younger brother. “Shh… it’s just a storm,” Fíli tries to calm his brother, rubbing his back in a soothing manner. “But… it’s scary…” Kíli gets out in between sobs and he clings to Fíli, fisting the fabric of his brother’s nightshirt in his hands.

Fíli pulls Kíli into a tight embrace and kisses the top of his head. “It can’t hurt you, it’s safe inside the house.” … unless lightning were to strike the house but Fíli decides not to share that bit of information with Kíli.

It takes a long while until the storm outside quietens…  and all through it, Fíli just holds Kíli in his arms. “I feel stupid…” Kíli says quietly when the only sound coming from outside is the soft drip drop of water drops that fall down on leaves and window sills.

“Because you’re scared of thunderstorms?” Fíli asks. Kíli nods in reply and Fíli feels it more than he sees it.

“Everybody’s scared of something, though.”

“I bet Uncle Thorin isn’t. He’s not scared of anything. And certainly not of thunderstorms.”

Fíli can’t help but chuckle quietly. “Maybe not thunderstorms… but I’m sure there’s something. Nobody’s completely fearless, some people just don’t show their fears in front of others.”

“Hmm,” Kíli hums and seems content with that answer. It’s another few minutes before he speaks up again. “Fíli? What are you scared of?”

“Uhm…” Fíli thinks for a moment, “Maybe not being good enough, disappointing Uncle Thorin or mother.” “That’s what you’re most scared of?” Kíli digs deeper.

This time Fíli doesn’t have to think for long because he knows the answer to that question, has known ever since he’s been old enough the grasp the concepts of life. “No, it’s not,” he answers, his voice barely more than a whisper.

“What then?” Kíli looks at his brother curiously, even though it’s dark and they can barely see each other. Fíli answers and if possible, his voice is even more quiet now. “Losing you… Of all the things in the world, I’m most scared that something bad might happen some day and I’ll lose you.”

“Oh…” Kíli says, obviously at loss for words and Fíli unconsciously hugs his brother closer against his chest.

“But you won’t lose me!” Kíli pipes up then, “Because you’re the best brother and you always look out for me. And when you’re not there, I promise I’ll do my best not to do anything stupid and die.” He nods enthusiastically to emphasize his point.

“Kíli, you can’t promise me that you won’t die. The world doesn’t work like that,” Fíli says but he smiles about Kíli’s promise nonetheless.

Kíli pouts for a moment. “I didn’t say that… I just promised you wouldn’t lose me. You know, when we die one day, I’m sure we’ll die together. I’m not letting you die without me and you’re not letting me die, either. So that’s the logical conclusion,” he explains and Fíli is surprised that his brother comes up with such thoughts. Because sometimes Fíli seems to forget that they’re both growing up and at times, Kíli surprises him and says things that sound far too serious.

“That is quite… morbid,” Fíli replies after a moment, “Look, can we not talk about anyone dying anymore?” “I’m sorry… I just wanted to make you feel better. Because you made me feel better about the storm…”

It’s one of those rare times where Kíli’s apologies sound like actual remorse and not just a hollow phrase because an adult has chastised him for something or another. It’s also an occasion where Fíli in return feels bad because he doesn’t want Kíli to think he’s done something wrong. But it’s hard to explain how all the talking about fears and death and loss makes him feel and so he just settles on “It’s okay… let’s sleep now, yes?”

“You’ll stay here, though?” Kíli asks and in that moment all the seriousness from before is gone and Fíli just sees his baby brother who needs him. “Of course,”  he answers and presses a kiss to Kíli’s forehead.

They fall asleep wrapped around each other and when their mother enters the room the following morning to wake them up, she isn’t surprised at all to find her sons in one bed in a tangle of limbs and blankets. Instead she only wonders why they even bothered to put a second bed in the room a while ago. 


	2. In which Fíli gets his first kiss (and Kíli is jealous)

It’s midsummer. And for the dwarves in the Blue Mountains that means there’s a feast tonight. The shortest night of the year is celebrated with lots of ale and mead and good food and the night is made even shorter by the fact that hardly anyone will sleep at all tonight.

After much pleading and persuading, Dís has given in and allowed her sons to stay at the feast all night as well. They were never allowed to before because she thought they were too young but after all, she can’t keep Fíli and Kíli from growing up and the other young dwarves their age had already been allowed to stay the previous year…

Fíli and Kíli look incredibly smug when it gets late and the children are all being sent to bed while they’re still sitting at one of the tables. There’s a big fire roaring in the middle of the square, there’s music playing and the air is thick with the smell of good food and drinks.

“You can drink one ale each! No more than that… I’ll have your heads if the two of you get drunk!” Dís’ voice still rings clear in both their ears but who are they complain when an older dwarf re-fills their by now empty tankards (“Mothers always fuss,” he says, “You’re old enough to have a drink, lads!”). But maybe they’re not old enough after all and after the second ale they definitely feel tipsy. And because the temptation of drinking more isn’t worth the wrath of their mother, they refrain from drinking more.

Kíli has been in a very good mood all evening. He’s been having the time of his life with Fíli. However, his mood changes to annoyed when one of the few dwarven girls shows up, sitting down next to Fíli and clearly having no intention of leaving again anytime soon.

Kíli knows her, of course he does, their community isn’t that big. Her name is Drífa, she is two years older than him, has wavy blond hair (a lot lighter still than Fíli’s hair) and Kíli has never really liked her. Her family has only settled in the Blue Mountains a few years ago and somehow that makes her different from all the other young dwarves they grew up with.

Kíli also hasn’t failed to notice that the longer she’s been around, the more attention she’s been giving Fíli and for some reason that irritates him. And now she’s been almost glued to Fíli’s side for hours. Kíli has never disliked her as much as he does right now.

“Dance with me, Fíli!” Drífa says and Kíli has to fight the urge to roll his eyes at the girl. Does she know how obvious she is? But Fíli either doesn’t mind or is too polite to decline and so he’s off to dance with Drífa, leaving Kíli alone at the table.

Kíli believes his mood cannot become much worse. He watches his brother and wishes the song was over so Fíli would come back and spend time with him instead. What good is being allowed to be at the feast when Fíli leaves him behind and he ends up all alone? But when the music stops, Fíli doesn’t come back. Instead, Kíli watches as Drífa drags his brother away from the feast, off into the trees.

Kíli decides he’s had enough and follows them, even if Fíli might be mad at him for that later. It’s not hard to keep track of where they’re going, he hears the girl’s giggles a short distance ahead. Kíli wonders if she’s had more to drink than they’ve had… but girls tend to be giggly sometimes and it might be just that.

By now they’ve reached the meadow near the stream and Kíli doesn’t follow them there. He stays behind, hidden in the shadows of the trees. He has no idea what they’re up to but it becomes obvious all too soon when he sees Drífa lean closer to Fíli and kiss him. Kíli is frozen on the spot. He doesn’t know what he feels, he just knows he doesn’t want that girl to kiss his brother. And he most certainly doesn’t want Fíli to kiss her back which is what is happening right now.

It takes another moment for Kíli to realise that what he feels is jealousy. And that he’d very much like to go out there and pull the girl away from Fíli. But he doesn’t have to do that because they’ve broken apart now and Kíli can hear that silly giggling again. They’re talking about something now and Drífa is gesturing towards the direction they came from. Fíli shakes his head and then Drífa kisses him on the cheek before she goes for the trees alone. Kíli takes care to stay hidden as she passes him and most likely heads back to the feast.

Meanwhile, Fíli has sat down on the grass and Kíli waits for a while until he walks over to join him in the clearing. Fíli doesn’t seem to be surprised when Kíli shows up beside him. “You’ve been here the whole time, haven’t you?” he asks without even looking at his younger brother.

“Are you mad because I followed you?” Kíli asks in return and sits down next to Fíli, cross-legged on the grass. Fíli shakes his head and looks up at the starry sky. “She kissed me…” he says and his voice sounds like he doesn’t believe that she did. “I saw…” Kíli remarks and it sounds sour, even to his own ears.

Fíli chuckles at that and Kíli’s mood drops even lower. “Don’t worry, little brother. You’ll soon have girls fawning over you, too. You’re not bad looking, after all.”

That’s when Kíli suddenly understands. Oh yes, he definitely understands but Fíli doesn’t understand a thing. He’s got it all wrong. “You think I’m jealous because you get attention from a girl and I don’t?” Kíli asks, just to be sure.

“Yes? I thought you were jealous because she kissed me… and no girl has kissed you yet.” Fíli looks honestly confused now and Kíli almost thinks it’s funny. It would be funny if it didn’t also mean that Fíli has no idea whatsoever about his brother’s feelings.

Kíli snorts. “And they say you’re the clever one out of us. Fíli, I couldn’t care less about her. I don’t care about whom she kisses. But she kissed _you_. She stole your first kiss and it should have been _mine_.”

He suddenly realises what he just said and shuts up, looking away. Kíli definitely didn’t plan on saying that, he has no idea where that even came from. Of course, he knows it’s true… but he never thought about it before and even if he had, he certainly wasn’t planning on telling Fíli. Now he’s said far too much and he’s scared what Fíli will make of it. He probably thinks he’s weird… or worse, is disgusted by him.

So Kíli concentrates hard on picking at a loose thread on his sleeve and hopes Fíli will just spare him the embarrassment and simply forget everything he just said. But of course he doesn’t.

“Really?” Fíli asks, “You want to kiss me?” There’s a hint of amusement in his voice and Kíli is confused. So he’s making fun of him now, that’s not much better, really.

“Hmm…” he just hums in reply, without looking up, he doesn’t dare to look at Fíli right now. “Why haven’t you said anything before?”

Kíli sighs. “Because I didn’t really understand… and it’s weird, isn’t it? No one wants to kiss their brother. Not like _that_.” “Guess that makes me weird, too, then.”

It takes a moment until the meaning of those words registers for Kíli and when it does, he looks at Fíli, eyes wide in disbelief. “Are you mocking me?” he asks because there’s no way Fíli can be serious.

Fíli shakes his head calmly. “I didn’t know you felt like that. You never mentioned anything, not even a hint. If I had known… well, I certainly wouldn’t have let Drífa kiss me tonight. Not even if I had been completely drunk.”

“So you don’t even like her?” Kíli asks. “She’s alright… but I’m not in love with her or anything. I let her kiss me because I was curious,” Fíli admits with a shrug, “And you know what… that might have been my first kiss, but no one has kissed you yet…”

Fíli trails off at that point and looks at Kíli who fails to understand the implication. “Uhm yeah… so?” Fíli smiles at him. “How about I get the honour of being _your_ first kiss?”

Kíli understands and suddenly he feels lost because this is what he wanted but he hasn’t counted on getting it, no, not at all. And he’s aware of the fact that he doesn’t know what real kisses are supposed to be like and it doesn’t matter that Fíli is only one kissing experience ahead. So now he’s nervous and he absolutely doesn’t want to mess up.

Thinking all this cannot have taken that long but apparently long enough that Fíli interprets Kíli’s hesitation as a no. “It was just a suggestion, you know… I thought because-“ he says but Kíli cuts him off: “No! I mean… yes!”

Fíli chuckles. “Yes or no?” Kíli nods. “Yes, but… I’m a little nervous,” he admits. Fíli inches closer. “You don’t have to be,” he says quietly and cups Kíli’s cheek, thumb stroking over stubbly skin. Kíli swallows nervously and when Fíli leans in, he stops thinking and his eyes flutter shut like on reflex.

Their lips touch, barely brushing against each other until Kíli relaxes a little, so that Fíli grows more bold and deepens the kiss. Kíli just goes along with it. Fíli tastes like the ale from earlier. But there’s more – there’s something so distinctly _Fíli_ that makes all of Kíli’s nervousness vanish into thin air. It’s new but at the same time so very familiar and it sounds stupid and clichéd but somehow kissing Fíli feels like coming home.

He has a hunch that this is probably not the most perfect kiss but it doesn’t matter. It’s better than he has imagined and practice makes perfect, after all. When they break apart, Kíli feels a little dazed and he’s not sure if it’s the alcohol left in his system or Fíli that makes him feel lightheaded.

Before he has made up his mind about that, Fíli has leant in to peck him softly once more. Kíli smiles against Fíli’s lips. “Happy now, little brother?” Fíli asks as he pulls back. “Very,” Kíli answers and then he adds cheekily: “So who’s the better kisser, Drífa or me?”

Fíli laughs at his antics. “Oh dear… well, I guess Drífa is the better kisser,” he starts and as Kíli opens his mouth to voice his protest he continues, “But I still like kissing you a lot more.” Kíli’s protest is forgotten and instead he just grins happily. Fíli smiles back at him fondly before he leans back and lies down in the grass. Kíli joins him a moment later, snuggling against his side, and Fíli wraps an arm around his brother’s shoulder.

“Do you think we can get away with spending the night out here?” Kíli asks. Fíli is looking up at the night sky again which is already starting to turn into a lighter shade of blue in the east. “I guess… most of them will stay at the feast until daybreak anyway. I don’t think we’ll be missed,” he replies.

Kíli nods and snuggles even closer, burying his face in the crook of Fíli’s neck. “Fíli… will you kiss me more often now?” he asks after a while. “I’d love to.” “But won’t it change things?”

“It doesn’t have to, really… we just add something, right? I have one request, though,” Fíli says. Kíli turns to look at Fíli. “A request?” he asks. Fíli nods. “Yes. Next time there’s something you want or don’t want me to do or if there’s something you want to do… you’ll tell me. Even if you’re not sure what it means. But no more secrets.”

Kíli smiles. “No more secrets,” he agrees and then moves to kiss Fíli softly. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Drífa is an Old Norse name and it means snowfall.


	3. In which Fíli remembers

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm clearly doing something wrong when I write baby dwarves and it still gives me feels... The part in italics is obviously a flashback.

It’s a warm day in early summer. There’s not a cloud in the sky and a warm breeze is rustling gently through the leaves of the trees. Near the bank of the clear stream coming down from the mountains there are two young dwarves lying in the grass. Fíli and Kíli are lying side by side in the warmth of the sun, their hair still damp after going for a swim.

It is an anniversary today. It’s not a happy one, though. Today it has been 42 years that their father is dead. Fíli doesn’t even have to think about the number, he just knows. It’s always there and it’s like there’s this part of his mind that always keeps tracks of how long it has been. He doesn’t think about it all the time, of course, but when he does it’s clear as day. It’s usually a day where he distracts himself with something or another and tries to keep himself and Kíli out of their mother’s way.

“How long has it been?” Kíli suddenly asks and it seems to Fíli as if his brother has been reading his thoughts. “42 years today…” he answers without bothering to check whether they talk about the same thing. “Time sure does fly, doesn’t it?” Kíli remarks and he sits up.

Fíli does the same and they sit next to each other in silence for a while. “Do you remember much about him? About father, I mean?” Kíli looks at his brother questioningly. Fíli takes a moment before he replies. “Bits and pieces. There are things I remember very well, like how he sounded when he laughed when he played with us… but other things are sort of hazy.”

“Do you remember what he looked like? I’ve heard people say more than once that you take after him.” Kíli smiles as he looks at Fíli. “Well, they’d know better than me, right?” Fíli shrugs his shoulders. “I mean, I was six when he died, I don’t remember him all too clearly. But yeah, he had blond hair as well, I do remember that. And blue eyes. I also remember that he smiled a lot, at least when he was with us… at home.”

Kíli hums in contemplation and stares off into the distance. “I wish I’d known him. It’s awful to think how… well, I was there. But I was too young to remember anything about him.”

Fíli doesn’t actually know what is worse. Kíli not remembering at all or himself who had known their father and knows what he’s missing. It’s equally bad, probably, but in different ways. In the end it comes down to both of them knowing that something’s missing and they won’t get it back.

“You don’t remember a lot, then…” Kíli says. “In general, no. But there is something I remember very clearly.” “So what’s that?” Kíli looks at his brother curiously. “The day father died… I remember everything about it,” Fíli says quietly. “Can you tell me?” Kíli asks tentatively and Fíli nods.

_It had been a day in June, not unlike the one 42 years later. Sunny all day and quite warm. Fíli had spent all afternoon sitting in the sun in front of their house, playing with the wooden toy animals his father had carved for him. Kíli was sitting next to him but you could argue about whether or not he was playing along with his brother. Kíli was still only a toddler, he couldn’t even walk or talk properly yet. His “playing” with Fíli mainly consisted of trying to steal the toys away from him and then proceeding to chew on them. Fíli had stopped being annoyed about it because he understood that it was just what little children did. And he always got his toys back, even if they were wet from his baby brother’s drool…_

_Their mother was sitting not far from then, keeping an eye on her boys as she sat on the bench in front of the house and was peeling potatoes for dinner. Up to that point, it really wasn’t a day out of the ordinary._

_Fíli could tell things weren’t how they were supposed to be when it was getting dark and his father wasn’t home yet. He was out in the woods on a hunting trip, with their Uncle Thorin and some others. The dwarves usually didn’t have to travel far to find good game and thus rarely stayed outside overnight. Still, it did happen from time to time. But then it had usually been planned so in advance._

_Fíli noticed his mother becoming fidgety, although she tried to hide it. A change in plans didn’t have to mean a bad thing but it always meant that something unforeseen had happened. It wasn’t long before she put Kíli to bed (who had already fallen asleep on her lap as she told her sons a story) while Fíli insisted on staying awake until his father returned. But Dís wasn’t having any of this and so Fíli found himself in bed next to Kíli shortly later. There was a bad feeling he couldn’t understand but he was sleepy and drifted off to sleep within mere minutes._

_He had no clue what time it was when he woke up. It was, however, still dark outside. Fíli heard noises in the house and at first he thought it was just his father who had returned from the hunting trip. But then he noticed there were other voices, people speaking in hushed tones, or at least attempting to. He recognized his mother’s voice and then also his uncle’s. But why would Uncle Thorin come back to their house in the middle of the night? Something wasn’t right…_

_Fíli got up. Before he left the room, he draped the blankets back over Kíli properly. His little brother had a talent for kicking all the sheets away from himself in his sleep. He was still sleepy and confused when he found Dís and Thorin standing in the hallway. “Mama?” he asked, rubbing the sleep from his eyes, “Where’s father?”_

_“Go back to bed, Fíli,” his mother answered and it was then that he noticed her red-rimmed eyes and how constricted her voice sounded. “Is something wrong with father?” Fíli asked._

_Instead of answering, Dís looked at Thorin. “Maybe we should let him see him. We don’t know how long…” His uncle trailed off at that point and Fíli realised that whatever had happened, it was_ bad _. Dís nodded and tears started welling up in her eyes, although it was clear that she tried very hard not to cry._

_Thorin approached his nephew and crouched down in front of him so they were at eye level. “Fíli, listen,” he said and rested his hands on the boy’s shoulders, “Something bad happened. Your father, he… had an accident. He’s very badly injured. You can go and see him. But you need to be a brave boy. Can you do that for him? Be strong and not cry?”_

_Fíli nodded and looked as serious as a six year old dwarfling could look. “Okay,” Thorin said. He got up and took Fíli’s hand, leading him into his parents’ bedroom. There was another dwarf there with his father. Fíli had seen him before and knew he was a healer. The elderly dwarf stepped back when Thorin entered the room with Fíli and as he left the room, Fíli could hear him speak quietly to his mother._

_His father was lying in bed, Fíli could see that his torso had been wrapped in bandages. But blood was already seeping through and his father looked dreadfully pale. Fíli hesitated and Thorin gently nudged him towards the bed._

_When Fíli approached the bed, his father opened his eyes and it took a moment until his gaze focused on his son. “Hello Fíli…” he said quietly and tried to smile, “Look what a mess your father has gotten himself into.” Fíli gnawed on his lower lip. “But you’ll be alright again, won’t you?” he asked._

_“Come, sit here with me,” Fíli’s father said and his voice sounded strangely hoarse. Fíli did as he was asked and scrambled up to sit on the edge of the bed. “Are you gonna die?” By now Fíli was really trying his hardest not to cry. “I think I am… don’t cry, Fíli. You know we’ll see each other again one day.”_

_That was easier said than done and Fíli couldn’t stop the tears from rolling over his cheeks. But he nodded anyway. His father reached out to ruffle his hair gently. “You’re a good boy, Fíli. I know you’d make me proud. Listen… when I’m gone, you’re the man in this house. You have to look after Kíli, protect him. And look a bit after your mother, too. You can do that, right?” “I can. I promise,” Fíli said earnestly. His father smiled weakly. “That’s my boy.”_

“He died the morning after that. I learned years later that it wasn’t an accident. They had been surprised by a small number of stray orcs that had ventured too far west,” Fíli ends the story.

Kíli has been uncharacteristically quiet the whole time. “Do you wish you hadn’t asked?” Fíli asks. Kíli shakes his head. “No… it’s just… all of this happened and I don’t remember any of it. I was just a useless babe. It can’t have been easy afterwards,” he says thoughtfully.

“Hmm… it wasn’t,” Fíli agrees, “Mother grew very distant for a while. It was like… she was there but yet she wasn’t. She was so consumed by her grief. She did everything that had to be done but she was so… detached.” “What?” Kíli asks, confused, “Why didn’t you ever tell me?”

“Because I didn’t talk to anyone about it. And I think the only other person who noticed was Thorin. And you know him… I don’t think he knew how to deal with it. Mother had already lost so many people close to her, he wasn’t going to tell her to stop mourning her dead husband.” Fíli can only try to understand how hard life has been on their mother. She has lost her grandfather, her father, her brother and on that day 42 years ago, her husband. Life has been anything but kind to her in that aspect.

Kíli doesn’t reply and instead just looks thoughtfully at something in the distance. He sighs. “I can’t even imagine mother like that… she always seemed so strong to me.” “Even a strong person is allowed to break down at times. I think she snapped out of it when she noticed how it affected us.”

“Us? How?” Kíli frowns. “I remember you cried a lot after father died. You were never a whiny child before. And even when you did cry, I could make you stop when mother couldn’t. I pulled a funny face or something and you stopped crying.” Fíli smiles as he remembers that. “But after father’s death that didn’t work anymore… the first few months were a hard time for all of us. And it’s a time I’d rather forget, to be honest. But then mother pulled herself together, for us mainly. And I think now she only mourns for father on this day, on the anniversary of his death.”

Kíli plucks out a blade of grass from next to him and chews on it. “I know,” he finally says, “You might think I haven’t noticed how you always try to get us out of the house then, so she can have some time alone. I’m not dumb, you know?”

Fíli grins and elbows his brother in the side at the accusation. “Never said you were.” Kíli looks at him. “But you do think I’m too young for many things. You keep things to yourself because you think I can’t deal with it. But I can! You can share those things with me… it’s less of a burden then.”

In reply, Fíli smiles and then moves closer to pull his brother into a tight embrace. “I know,” he whispers and then he pulls back and rests his forehead against Kíli’s. “But I can’t forget what I promised father. I _will_ protect you. Always.”

Kíli smiles widely at hearing that. “I’m not stopping you. But let me return the favour. Let me protect you, too.” Fíli chuckles. “I’ll try.”

“Good,” Kíli says, “And now we’ll go home and then we’ll surprise mother and make dinner for her!” Kíli all but jumps up and pulls Fíli to his feet as well. “You sure that’s a good idea?” Fíli sounds sceptical.

Kíli laughs as he drags his brother along behind him. “What do you mean? My ideas are _always_ good ideas!”


	4. In which Fíli nearly loses Kíli

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The prompt for this one came from the lovely Sansaery: "Fíli and Kíli have a row, and both are too stubborn to make the first step towards reconciliation. Until one of them ends up in trouble and the other rushes to his aid."

“Don’t you two want to eat breakfast?” Dís calls from the kitchen as she hears her sons rummaging around in the hall. “Not hungry,” Fíli answers. “No time,” Kíli adds. Fíli is already out the door when Dís enters the hall and Kíli is hurrying to follow his brother. “Kíli, put on some warmer clothes!” she says sternly but Kíli only shakes his head. “It’s not that cold. I won’t freeze, ma,” he replies and runs off after Fíli. Dís only shakes her head. “Oh, those boys…”

“Fíli, wait for me!” Kíli is running to catch up. “It’s not my fault you’re so slow,” Fíli teases. “I’m not slow, you ran off when I wasn’t ready,” Kíli retorts and Fíli laughs quietly. “Whatever you say…”

They walk the rest of the way in comfortable silence, only disturbed by the playful scuffle that follows when Kíli bumps his shoulder against Fíli’s a little too hard, almost knocking his unprepared brother off balance.

They’re meeting up with some other young dwarves for training. These others are slightly older than both Fíli and Kíli and initially they’ve only asked Fíli to join them. But Kíli has instantly decided that whatever his brother does, he’ll do, too. And so he tags along, not even bothering to think he might not be wanted.

“I’m not taking him along,” one of the other ones says when he sees Kíli. “What do you mean ‘you’re not taking him along’? Fíli looks at him and crosses his arms over his chest, clearly irritated. “It means that we don’t mind you but nobody ever said your baby brother was invited,” another dwarf pipes up. “I’m not a baby!” Kíli protests instantly.

The older boys have the nerve to laugh. “Aww, now he’s getting angry. Look at him… how skinny he is and he doesn’t even have a beard yet.” Kíli is seething with rage. He waits for Fíli to speak up, to defend him. But instead, his brother takes him aside.

“Maybe you should go home… it would save us trouble,” Fíli says quietly. “What, so you think they’re right? That I’m a baby?” Kíli glares at Fíli. “I don’t!” Fíli rolls his eyes. “But I really want to go with them… please don’t spoil this for me, Kíli.”

“Spoil?! Who’s spoiling what here? Your so-called friends are a bunch of idiots and you just think they’re _so_ cool because they’re older than us.” Kíli cannot believe what Fíli is doing right now. That he’s abandoning him for these fools who have about as much common sense as a herd of sheep.

“You’re being childish,” Fíli retorts, “And you’re just jealous because they want me to come along and not you. You know what, maybe they are right. Maybe you are still a baby.”

Kíli gapes at Fíli, his eyes wide and disbelieving. “I hate you,” he says after a few moments of just staring at his brother. Then he turns on his heels and leaves before Fíli will notice the tears that are starting to well up in his eyes. And Fíli doesn’t do anything to hold him back. Fíli just stands there and lets him leave.

Kíli knows that Fíli cannot possibly mean what he has just said. He just can’t, that’s not like him. But the lengths to which he goes to impress the other boys… Kíli wouldn’t have thought his brother would do just about anything to impress them, to be accepted. Kíli has expected Fíli to stand up for him and defend him. How it has always been. But he hasn’t done that.

If Kíli were the older one, he’d have told the others to fuck off. Because that would have been the right thing to do. Kíli doesn’t think he’s ever been so angry and disappointed with his brother before. Not even when they were younger and used to have stupid sibling arguments all the time.

After a while Kíli stops dead in his tracks. He hasn’t really paid attention to where he’s been heading. As far away from Fíli if possible. He looks around and, yes, he’s probably succeeded with that since he doesn’t even recognise the part of the forest he’s in right now.

It has snowed overnight and a thin dusting of snow covers the ground. It’s bloody cold. The air is crisp and Kíli’s breath steams in it. Judging by the dull grey of the sky, more snow will fall today. The wind picks up and Kíli shivers. He begins to regret waving off his mother’s concerns about warmer clothes this morning. If only he had taken his scarf and mittens along. He rubs his hands together in a vain attempt to warm them.

But he’s not going back. Because that would probably mean seeing Fíli and Kíli is still mad at him. How dare he? How can’t he see that those “friends” of his are no good when even Kíli can see it? In their case, older certainly doesn’t mean wiser…

So, going home isn’t an option. But Kíli would still like to know where he is. He hasn’t been walking for that long. Or has he? The sky is so dark with clouds that Kíli can barely see the sun and guess what time it is. But he isn’t lost. He certainly isn’t lost. He’s never been lost in the woods around Ered Luin… he has wandered around here since he could barely walk. There’s no way he can get lost and it’s only a matter of time until he’ll reach a place he’ll recognise.

But also a while later Kíli has no clue where he is and by now it has started snowing again, thick, fluffy snowflakes falling from the sky and covering the ground. Kíli continues to look around, there has to be _something_ that gives him a clue where he is… but there isn’t, everything looks the same and everything looks unfamiliar.

While Kíli is completely focused on his surroundings he doesn’t pay attention to where he’s going and he doesn’t see the dip in the snow on the ground that is actually a rabbit hole and suddenly he stumbles. There’s a sharp pain in his foot and Kíli cries out as he falls to the ground. It takes a while until he has composed himself enough to assess the damage… but he realises he can’t even look at his foot. No matter how hard he dares to tug (which isn’t easy since it fucking hurts), his foot is stuck. He is stuck.

Now, if that doesn’t look promising. Stuck in the forest, lost, and freezing while it’s snowing heavily. Death by rabbit hole and snow. What a pitiful death for an heir to the line of Durin.

Kíli’s still attempting to see this in a funny light, to joke about the situation. But he cannot deny that he’s scared. He wants nothing more than to go home and to go home _now_. He wants Fíli to be here, argument be damned.

Kíli curses his own reckless decision of just running off into the blue without paying attention. He suspects people will come looking for him eventually. But when will that be? And how should they find him if he doesn’t even know where he is himself?

Kíli slumps down in a heap in the snow. It’s so cold… and his foot hurts. He shivers violently and tries to remember what he’s learned about not freezing to death. But the only thing he can recall is that you’re not supposed to fall asleep. But Kíli’s so tired after walking half of the day, he’s exhausted… if only Fíli was there with him. He’d know what to do, he always does…

*

‘I hate you!’ Kíli’s words are still ringing in Fíli’s ears.  Kíli has never said that to him before, even though they’ve argued more than once. But Fíli thinks he might have gone too far this time. He didn’t truly mean what he said… That hurt look on Kíli’s face, it makes Fíli feel awful because it was his fault.

Fíli hasn’t been paying attention all day and he’s had his ass kicked simply because his mind was elsewhere. This is pointless. “I’m going,” Fíli announces and without even properly saying goodbye, he heads home. He doesn’t listen to whatever the older boys call after him, probably teasing him again. Teasing him just like how they teased Kíli. It’s how they are and that doesn’t make it right but they pretty much treat everyone like that if they can get away with it.

Fíli needs to talk to Kíli and apologise for what an asshole he was earlier. If Kíli is even willing to talk to him and not giving him the silent treatment. His brother is quite good at being a stubborn little shit.

“Ma?” Fíli calls when he arrives at home, “Where’s Kíli?” Dís emerges from the pantry left of the hall. “What do you mean?” she asks, “I thought he was with you?”

Fíli frowns. This is odd. “He’s not here then?” His mother shakes her head. “I haven’t seen him since the two of you left the house this morning.” She narrows her eyes at her older son. “I know that guilty look on your face. What happened, did you fight?”

“Something like that…” Fíli sighs. “Well, you better find your brother and sort out whatever happened,” Dís says and goes back to her work. “Yeah…” Fíli agrees quietly.

But as it is getting dark and the snowfall heavier, Kíli still hasn’t showed up. He’s nowhere to find in the village and Fíli is worried. His mother is, too, he knows that. “I’m going into the forest to look for him. Maybe…” ‘Something has happened’ he wants to say but he doesn’t. Dís nods. “But you’re not going alone. One lost son is more than enough,” she says and then goes to ask some dwarves to go and join Fíli while searching for Kíli.

They search for hours and come up with nothing. Fíli is outright terrified by now. Kíli might be reckless sometimes but he’d never stay away for so long unless something was very wrong. He keeps on calling his brother’s name but there’s never an answer. The forest is dark and they should be glad for the snow because it makes things a little lighter. They’re about to go back and look again for Kíli when it’s morning again and they can see more when Fíli notices something. Something dark in contrast to the white of the snow…

“Kíli!” Fíli yells and breaks off into a run, leaving everyone else behind. There’s still no answer and Fíli swears his heart is beating so fast it’ll jump out of his chest any moment. “Kíli!” he calls again as he comes closer and now Kíli moves, turning his head slowly to look in his direction. Fíli sees his brother’s lips move and form his name but his voice is barely even a whisper.

Fíli has reached Kíli now and kneels down on the ground next to him, pulling him into a tight embrace. “I was so worried, Kíli. Thank god, I found you…” Kíli hugs him back and Fíli doesn’t fail to notice how weak his brother’s grip on him is. “Took you long enough…” Kíli says quietly. Fíli draws back, looking at Kíli. “Are you okay?” Only now does he notice that Kíli is shaking like a leaf, that his lips are slightly blue.

Kíli shakes his head. “My foot… I’m stuck…” he says. Fíli takes a closer look and sees where Kíli’s foot is stuck in the rabbit hole. “I’ll get you out,” he says. At first he tries pulling Kíli out but soon stops when Kíli hisses in pain. “I’m sorry…” Fíli says quickly. Okay, this doesn’t work then… Fíli tries digging the soil away but the stupid ground is hard and frozen. He gets out his knife and tries it with that and finally, some of the earth crumbles away and he can pull Kíli’s foot free carefully.

One look at the misery that is his brother tells him that Kíli won’t be able to walk and so he pulls him up. “Come on, I’ll carry you.” “I’m too heavy to carry…” Kíli protests weakly. “You’re not, now come on,” Fíli insists and then he carries Kíli home on his back. Fíli also declines every offer from the other dwarves that they carry Kíli for the rest of the way home. He has his brother back and he just can’t let go of him now.

Kíli is barely conscious by the time they reach home and he’s got everyone worried. While a healer is called to check him over, his mother ushers Fíli out of the room, no matter how much he protests. But when the healer says Kíli will be fine, that he just needs to warm up and get some rest and that his ankle is only sprained, Fíli has never felt so relieved in his life before.

Kíli sleeps through all of the following day and half of the next while Fíli rarely leaves his side. He has climbed into bed with him, warming Kíli up again since he was too damn close to actually freezing to death. Fíli doesn’t want to think about what would have happened if they hadn’t found him. Kíli could be dead now.

It’s around noon on the second day when Kíli wakes up properly. He looks at Fíli who’s there with him, holding him. They lock eyes for a moment before Kíli just snuggles closer into his brother’s warmth. “I’m so sorry, Kíli… this is all my fault,” Fíli says quietly, “I never meant anything of what I said and I was so stupid.” “It’s not your fault,” Kíli answers, “Although yes, you were stupid. But apology accepted. Don’t fret about it anymore.”

Fíli nods but his guilty conscience is still nagging at him. “I said stop fretting,” Kíli repeats as if he can read his brother’s thoughts and he reaches out to brush a strand of hair out of his face.

“I almost lost you… and… the last thing you would have said to me is that you hate me,” Fíli says. He worries his lip between his teeth. “I was mad at you. I never meant that. I couldn’t hate you if I wanted to,” Kíli says and then he chuckles, “Awesome, I get the feeling that I just told you something you can use against me.”

Fíli shakes his head and smiles fondly before pulling his brother close against his chest. “My sweet little Kíli…” “Not little,” Kíli murmurs and Fíli knows that Kíli is pouting even when he cannot see it. He laughs quietly. “Okay, not little.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am quite afraid this was the last part for a while. My holidays are almost over and I'll be very busy. This was also my last prompt. So if you have any ideas, feel free to send me a message and tell me!


	5. In which Fíli is sick

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am soooo sorry that I've kept everyone waiting for so long :( But I really can't co-ordinate writing with my job, it seems. I hope I still have some readers left x)
> 
> And this is finally a chapter with hair braiding. I know we all love that ;)

It was very poor timing, to say the least. Some days ago, Dís had gone to visit some relative, a cousin, who lived in another part of the Blue Mountains. And she had trusted both her sons not to do anything stupid while she was gone. Well, getting sick wasn’t exactly “doing something stupid”… but Fíli still thought he could have done without it.

However, he didn’t get to have a say in this and the following morning he’d woken up with a bad cold. And while it was nothing serious, he did have a fever and a cough and basically felt very miserable. He’d been confined to his bed for the next few days which left every task their mother had left them for Kíli alone to do.

Fíli had thought that Kíli would be annoyed about it. That he’d complain about doing everything alone while Fíli was to stay in bed. But to his surprise he hadn’t heard a single complaint from his little brother. If anything, he seemed really worried about Fíli, even though he just had a damn cold. But the way he fussed about him was adorable in a way. It was probably the only positive thing about being sick.

Kíli seemed intent on proving that he was perfectly capable of looking after the house and caring for his brother while he was sick. Their mother had been reluctant to leave. Always worried about them, like all mothers are. But they weren’t children anymore. Both Fíli and Kíli were adolescents by dwarven standards and they were pretty sure they could look after themselves, thank you very much. Or he could if he wasn’t sick, Fíli thought.

Now that two days had passed, Fíli was already feeling a lot better and he began to grow bored. Today Kíli had been particularly busy it seemed because he had only checked on him a few times throughout the day. And even then, he had only stayed a few minutes before he went off again.

The sky was already darkening, the stars coming out, when Kíli slipped into the room, balancing two bowls of stew in his hands. “Dinner,” he announced.

“That smells good,” Fíli commented with a smile.

“I hope it tastes good as well… I’m not so sure. I tried to make it like Mother always does but I couldn’t remember all the ingredients.” Kíli handed his brother a bowl and a spoon.

“I’m sure it’s okay,” Fíli assured his brother before he tasted the food. It wasn’t bad. Of course it wasn’t as good as their mother’s cooking but it was definitely edible. “It’s good,” he said.

Kíli smiled. “Yeah, it’s not bad,” he agreed as he sat down on the edge of the bed with his own bowl in his hands.

“What have you been up to all day? You seemed really busy,” Fíli asked in between mouthfuls of stew.

“Chopping firewood,” Kíli answered with his mouth full. He swallowed before he continued: “We were nearly out of wood ad it gets pretty cold at night already. Didn’t want you to get more sick than you already are.”

Fíli nodded. “So you can actually work instead of being lazy when I can’t help you,” he teased Kíli and grinned.

“I’m not lazy!” Kíli protested at once. But when Fíli burst out laughing he admitted: “Well… maybe I am… sometimes.”

“More like most of the time,” Fíli said, still chuckling. Kíli only glared at him.

When they were done eating, they simply set the bowls aside and Kíli slipped into bed next to Fíli. He yawned and rested his head against his brother’s shoulder.

“Tired?” Fíli asked as he wrapped an arm around Kíli’s shoulders.

“Yeah… apparently, being not lazy as a very tiring thing,” Kíli replied and snuggled closer into Fíli’s warmth.

Fíli started playing with a strand of Kíli’s hair, disentangling the knots in it. “Hey Kíli…”

“Hm?”

“Can I braid your hair?” Fíli requested.

“You know I don’t like having braids in my hair…” Kíli objected.

“But I want to… Please? You can let them unravel afterwards.”

Kíli sighed. “Fine,” he said and sat up again, “Only because I like you so much.”

Fíli smiled. “Come here. Sit down in front of me, in between my legs,” he said and Kíli did as he was told, sitting with his back to Fíli.

Fíli set to work, starting by disentangling all the knots in his brothers mop of hair.

“Don’t pull on it like that!” Kíli complained after a few moments which made Fíli chuckle.

“If you let me do this more often, your hair wouldn’t be so tangled in the first place,” he said calmly and tugged at a strand for emphasis.

Kíli huffed in response but stopped complaining. Fíli often thought it was a shame that his brother rarely let him do this… he liked Kíli’s wild hair but without the tangles and properly brushed, it looked even nicer and felt like silk between his fingers. Fíli wondered how long he could get away with just toying with Kíli’s hair before his brother grew impatient.

Kíli didn’t complain but simply started laughing quietly at some point. “You’re not even braiding,” he said and Fíli could hear the smile in his voice.

“Sorry…” Fíli answered.

“Nah, nevermind,” Kíli said  and leant back against Fíli’s chest as Fíli continued weaving loose braids into Kíli’s dark locks.

Fíli smiled as he looked at his younger brother. The way he lay there, sprawled half across his lap with his eyes closed… he reminded him of an oversized kitten. He only needed to start purring to complete the impression. Fíli bent down to kiss Kíli on the forehead which had Kíli open his eyes and peer up at him, a smile on his lips.

“I’m proud of you, you know?” Fíli said.

“Hm, why?” Kíli asked, a little confused.

“For managing everything when I can’t help,” Fíli explained.

Kíli frowned at him. “I’m not a child anymore. Even though no one seems to realize that.”

“I do,” Fíli said, “That’s why I said it.”

It was true. Most people treated the brothers differently, seeing Fíli as almost grown up  while Kíli was still a child in their eyes. Fíli had never understood why. He was older, yes. But not by much. And in the past few years Kíli had really grown up, both mentally and physically. Fíli saw him as an equal concerning many things. But in a way, Kíli would always be his baby brother, the one he had held in his arms as a crying babe. He would always feel the need to protect him, even when Kíli didn’t need it.

“Sorry,” Kíli said quietly, “Didn’t want to snap at you.”

“It’s okay…” Fíli replied.

“Can we sleep now? It was a long day…”

Fíli nodded. “Sure,” he said. He noticed Kíli hesitate and glance over towards his own bed. “Wanna sleep here with me?” he asked, amusement clear in his voice. His little brother could be rather obvious sometimes…

Kíli smiled widely in response. “Yes.” He nodded.

And after they had blown out the candles and made themselves comfortable, snuggled against each other for warmth and comfort, Kíli said: “You know, you can braid my hair again tomorrow if you want to.”

Fíli smiled in the darkness of the room. “I’d love to,” he replied.


	6. In which Thorin sings a song

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Bby!dwarves ♥ Also, general Durin feels with Thorin and Dís thrown in.

Dís sighed as she looked at the mess that had once been Fíli’s shirt and was now more holes than short. She really wished her sons would stop tearing every piece of clothing they owned while they were out playing. She could somehow understand how Kíli always managed to ruin his trousers by falling on his knees… because her younger son always struggled to keep up with his older brother, running after him on his short legs. He still tended to be a bit unsteady on his feet and stumbled more often than not in the process. That didn’t stop him from following Fíli, though.

But really, the amount of times that she had mended Fíli’s clothes because he had gotten them stuck in a bush or the branches of a tree were uncountable and no matter how often she told him to pay attention, he still came home with his clothes torn.

Dís was so immersed in her work that she didn’t notice someone approaching. So she jumped a little when she suddenly heard someone speak.

“Is that how you welcome your brother when he comes to visit?”

Dís looked up to see Thorin standing in front of her, a smile on his lips.

“Is it nice to nearly give your sister a heart attack when she clearly hasn’t seen you coming?” she asked in return, but then got up to embrace her brother tightly. “It’s good to see you. But look at you! When was the last time you had proper food? Why can men never look after themselves properly?”

Thorin laughed heartily. “Stop the fussing!”

Dís smiled. “Come on… let’s go inside and I’ll make dinner. We have a lot to catch up on. It’s been years since you were here! I know you’re always busy, but really… this time you were gone for an awful long while.”

“Where are your boys?” Thorin asked as he followed his sister inside.

“Somewhere around here… the last time I saw them they were playing hide and seek earlier this afternoon.” Dís looked around and then shrugged. “They can’t be too far away.”

She was right, it wasn’t too long until Fíli came running into the kitchen, with Kíli on his heels. He stopped in his tracks when he saw Thorin which caused Kíli to run into his brother with full force and end up falling on his bottom.

“Uncle Thorin!” Fíli exclaimed happily and didn’t hesitate to run up to his uncle.

Thorin laughed and picked his nephew up, scooping him into his arms. “My… you have grown a lot since the last time I saw you.” Fíli just beamed at him.

“Kíli, don’t you want to say hello to your uncle as well?” Dís said and looked at her younger son expectantly. Kíli hadn’t budged from his spot on the floor and was peering up at them with big, brown eyes. Then he frowned and shook his head.

“He doesn’t remember me,” Thorin said to his sister and then turned to Kíli, “The last time I was here, you were still a babe.”

That he was supposed to know Thorin didn’t seem to convince Kíli either. Fíli wriggled out of his uncle’s arms and ran over to his brother. “Come on, don’t be stupid!” he said, pulling Kíli to his feet. Kíli shook his head determinedly again. “No!”

Dís sighed. “He’s not that shy usually… But I know someone who was just as stubborn when he was a child,” she said with a side glance at Thorin.

Her brother just laughed. “It’s a Durin trait.”

Dís continued to prepare dinner and after they had eaten, they all sat down in front of the hearth. Thorin and Dís on the chairs and Fíli and Kíli on the rug that was laid out on the floor.

“Can you tell us a story, Uncle Thorin?” Fíli demanded and Thorin couldn’t really say no… not when a pair of bright blue eyes was pleading with him like that.

So he started talking about Erebor. The Erebor that had existed when he and Dís had been children. He described every tiny detail he could remember and sometimes Dís would throw in something that he had forgotten. Fíli was soaking up every word like a sponge and even Kíli seemed to forget that he had been wary of Thorin earlier and unconsciously moved closer until he was sitting next to Fíli at his uncle’s feet.

At some point, Thorin started talking about all the mischief that he, Frerin and Dís had come up with when they were young. “One time,” he said, “we hid all of our father’s clothes. We hid them all over the place and it took him days until he had found everything again. He spent half the day walking around in a bathrobe. Afterwards we were grounded in our rooms for a week and only allowed to come out for meals… but it was very much worth it.”

The boys giggled and Thorin laughed as he remembered. “You’re giving them ideas!” Dís complained but laughed along with them nevertheless.

“Uncle Thorin?” Fíli asked and he suddenly seemed thoughtful.

“What is it?”

“Where is Uncle Frerin now? I’ve heard you and Ma and also others talk about him… but where is he?”

Thorin’s smile died and Dís answered for him. “He’s in another place now, Fíli. You know… like your father,” she explained.

“Oh,” Fíli said.

Dís didn’t know whether her sons understood what death was yet. Kíli was certainly too young to understand and she wasn’t sure about Fíli. But she knew they had understood that their father was in a place where they couldn’t go. And that they could never see him again. That they could never see anyone who went to that place again.

She also knew that her second brother’s death was still a sore topic for Thorin. Although it had now been decades since he had died in the Battle of Azanulbizar. “Come on,” she said and stood up, “It’s time for little dwarves to go to bed. It’s way past your bedtime already.”

While Fíli understood the hint and got up without much complaining, Kíli stood next to Thorin instead, tugging on his sleeve. “Song?” he asked.

“No Kíli, not now… your uncle can sing you a song tomorrow,” Dís said and took Kíli’s hand to pull him along. But Kíli pulled his hand from his mother’s grasp and looked up at Thorin again, a pout on his lips. “Please?” he asked.

“Kíli…” Dís sighed.

“Let the lad have his song,” Thorin said with a small smile. This time, Kíli wasn’t scared anymore when Thorin pulled him up to sit on his lap. “Fíli, come here as well,” Thorin added and Fíli soon scrambled up into his lap, too. Both boys looked at him expectantly and then he started singing.

 

_Far over the misty mountains cold_

_To dungeons deep and caverns old_

_We must away ere break of day_

_To seek the pale enchanted gold._

_The dwarves of yore made mighty spells,_

_While hammers fell like ringing bells_

_In places deep, where dark things sleep,_

_In hollow halls beneath the fells._

_For ancient king and elvish lord_

_There many a gleaming golden hoard_

_They shaped and wrought, and light they caught_

_To hide in gems on hilt of sword…_

Thorin sang all ten verses of the song. By the time the last note was sung, Kíli had fallen asleep already, leaning against his uncle’s chest, his small hands clutching at the fabric of his shirt. Fíli was barely awake still, struggling to keep his eyes open and he didn’t protest when his mother picked him up and carried him to bed. Thorin followed her, with Kíli sleeping soundly in his arms.

When they had put the dwarflings to bed, Thorin and Dís sat down near the fireplace again. “They’re good boys,” Thorin said after a while.

Dís smiled in return. “The best. At times they drive me insane… but I have no idea what I’d do without them. They remind me of the good things in life when… well, you know.”

“Fíli looks a lot like his father,” Thorin observed.

“Aye, he does,” Dís agreed with a sad smile, “He’s very much like him in character as well.”

“Not stubborn and hot-headed like you then?” Thorin teased.

Dís raised an eyebrow. “Careful, brother. We may not be children anymore but that doesn’t mean I will not hesitate to kick you in the shin when you start to annoy me,” she said calmly, “And well… there’s a fair bit of stubbornness, too. But I think Kíli will grow up to be the wild one of the two.”

“Kíli’s a clever little one… you know, I think he just wanted to cheer me up when he asked me to sing.”

Dís nodded. “He’s good at distracting people. Whenever Fíli is upset about something, Kíli starts pestering him about something or other until Fíli forgets whatever he was upset about. And Fíli does the same thing with Kíli. I don’t think they even notice that they’re doing it.”

Thorin smiled. “You can be proud of them.”

“Oh, I am”, Dís agreed, “I’m very proud of them.”


End file.
